The name of the blog, The Middle Seat, is almost visceral to me. I immediately feel like I'm packed into a way-too-tight airline seat with people on either side of me. And that's just the thing. Vacations are great. Traveling can be difficult. There are delays. There are security pat-downs. There are foul weather systems. There are middle seats.

The Middle Seat (the blog) is written by Wall Street Journal Travel Editor, Scott McCartney. Covering the airline industry since 1995, he has seen things "go from bust to boom and back to bust." And apparently he's done a pretty good job over that time. Scott won the Online News Association award for online commentary in 2003 for “The Middle Seat,” the George Polk Award for transportation reporting in 2000, and has been honored by the Deadline Club and New York’s chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

The Middle Seat covers everything from passengers rights to overcoming fear of flying. This site is not the type of travel site that highlights beaches and cruises. This blog is the voice of the guy sitting next to you who has maybe been on a few more flights than you, and has a few things to share about the experience. There could be worse people to sit next to.